Right next to The Pontiac Silverdome, home of the Detroit Mechanix Ultimate Frisbee team is Featherstone Fieldhouse. Inside of this modest looking arena, is a field full of young athletes now known as FC Sparta Michigan, the newest addition to the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL).Until recently, not much was known about the expansion club, aside from the fact that the club came from Canada, and will be going head-to-head with second-year NPSL club Detroit City FC both on and off the field.

Known as Windsor FC Spartans (or FC Windsor Spartans for some), the club has been around roughly 15 years, says Eric Kallis, one of the Sparta coaches.We've played in Michigan, Canada, and Europe (training squads in Portugal, Greece and Italy) and we came to Michigan because the talent pool is big," said Kallis. "We chose Berkley because it was the first field available to us when we made the switch to here, and it's a nice field. It's pretty close to downtown as well."

FC Sparta enters a crowded minor league soccer market. The Michigan Bucks, one of the most successful Premier Development League (PDL) clubs in North America since 1996, is based at the Ultimate Soccer Arenas in Pontiac. Detroit City FC plays their home games downtown at Cass Tech. So what makes FC Sparta different from Detroit City FC and the Michigan Bucks, the two existing minor league soccer teams in the Detroit area?

"Compare our philosophy to theirs," said director of player development James Babb. "We want to develop players to get them better. It's not fair to the player if we do not do that. We aren't going to try to hold players back, either. We want our players to progress, and get ready for the next level."

Babb echoed Kallis' praise of the talent that exists in the area.

"Southeast Michigan is known for its soccer. We figured we would pick up and start here where there is more talent. The move had been planned for awhile, but this felt like the right time to come over," said Babb.

Sparta plans to build their roster purely from players who are from Michigan or play in Michigan -- 'no ringers' as Babb put it.

Head coach George Kallis is expecting to come out boots blazing.

"We expect to give a good run for the money," said Kallis. "We want to come out strong and hold possession. We will play strict and organized with simple passing. Short and simple passing."

Kallis is on board with the philosophy of using local players because often times they are familiar with each other and he expects that to translate to fluid play on the field.

There expects to be some familiar faces when FC Sparta opens their inaugural season.

TJ Gore, another local player who spent time with the Bucks, brings some professional experience to the Sparta roster, having played for the Rochester Rhinos after a successful college career at the University of Vermont.

Another player expected to play for the club this year is former University of Michigan standout Hamoody Saad, the brother of Sporting Kansas City striker Soony Saad. Saad played two seasons with the Wolverines, was named to the Big Ten All-Freshman team and was among the team's leading scorers in both seasons before leaving the school.

A Hamoody Saad flashback: 2010

Paul "Bim" Ogunyemi made a name for himself playing his college ball at national power Schoolcraft. He traveled across the country and spent time with the Portland Timbers organization, where he starred for the Timbers U23 team that won the 2010 PDL championship while finishing undefeated, a rare feat in the league. He recently returned to the Detroit area and played for the Bucks last year where he scored a goal for them in a US Open Cup win over Jersey Shore Boca.

While still being relatively young, Ogunyemi, with his experience, could find himself in a leadership role for the team.

"Getting the team together would be the first step," said Ogunyemi, who was drafted 17th overall by FC Dallas in the 2011 MLS Supplemental Draft. "We want to make sure everyone on the team understands that they are equals. No egos, no superstars."

Gore finds himself in a similar situation.

"I'll serve as a veteran even though I'm not that old, yet, to help the younger players," said Gore. "Anything I can do to help, I will. We have a lot of talent on our roster. It's really a shame we can't compete in the Open Cup this year, I'm sure we'd turn some heads. We have a solid nucleus."

Ogunyemi, inished "Every day, I let them know, everyday is a chance to get better. Train hard and the hard work pays off."

There are two teams for FC Sparta Michigan, their NPSL team, which is the senior team, and their USL Under-20 squad which will, as the name suggests, be comprised of younger players, and used for development over the summer.

Sparta opens up their inaugural NPSL season against defending conference champion AFC Cleveland on May 10 in Parma, Ohio. Two days later, the first Michigan derby will begin as they host Detroit City FC at Hurley Field in Berkley.

"They have way more fans than us," quipped head coach Kallis, which incited laughter among the coaching staff, "They're intense. But this is between FC Sparta and Detroit City. We're going to go and show them what we've got. It won't be a boxing match."